Tory Burch: The Business of Empowering Women

Tory Burch, founder and chief executive officer of Tory Burch LLC, discusses her career, her foundation’s efforts to promote women entrepreneurs and her first book, Tory Burch: In Color.

On the importance of confidence: “If I could rewind to the beginning of my career, I would tell myself not to care about insignificant things and have more confidence in my gut. Throughout the last 10 years, whenever I haven’t followed my instincts, things have gone astray.

On giving back as core to her company’s mission: “When I first began fundraising, I often heard ‘never say the words social responsibility and business in the same sentence,’ and that made me more motivated. It was part of the business plan from the very beginning, always part of the DNA. I said then that it had to be good for the bottom line, and it has turned out to be.”

On empowering female entrepreneurs through her foundation: “I never had a business background, didn’t go to business school [and] never had a design background. Most of the entrepreneurs we work with [through the Tory Burch Foundation] are in the same position, so to have someone that’s extraordinary in business giving you advice on anything from what attorney [to use] or how to write a business plan can be incredibly helpful. And what also comes out of that is peer-to-peer mentoring and shared services.”